Sick leave
- Employer pays at least 70% of salary for up to 2 years; in the first year — not less than the minimum wage.
- For agency workers, the first 1–2 days of illness may be unpaid if so specified in the contract or collective agreement.
- Under the ABU agreement, you must inform both the agency and the company where you work about illness on the first day — by 10:00.
- If the contract ended during illness, the UWV service pays further.
Vacation and holidays
- Minimum — 4 of your working weeks per year: with 40 hours per week, this is 160 hours. Vacation accrues during illness as well.
- Paying money instead of statutory vacation is not allowed.
- There is no statutory right to a day off on a public holiday — it depends on the contract or collective agreement.
Working hours
- No more than 12 hours per shift and 60 hours per week, on average — up to 48 hours per week.
- After a shift — at least 11 hours of rest; when working over 5.5 hours — a 30-minute break.
- The law does not establish overtime pay. In the agency, conditions (pay, overtime, night shifts) must be no worse than those for employees of the client company in a similar position.
Agency contracts: stages A, B, C
- Stage A — up to 52 worked weeks in one agency. The contract may end together with the order.
- Stage B — up to 3 years and no more than 6 contracts.
- Stage C — open-ended contract with the agency.
- If the order lasted more than 26 weeks, the agency must give notice of its end at least 10 days in advance.
For those recruited from abroad: under the ABU agreement, the agency cannot force you to live in its housing or use its transport, take cash from you, and the contract must also be in your language.
Official sources
Data verified on October 4, 2026. Rules and amounts change — check with the source before making important decisions.
